Typically the TV stars that
have lingered longest and fondest in my memory are those I grew up watching, but
that didn’t happen with Annette. The
Mickey Mouse Club was canceled years before I was born, and her beach movies
were released before I started kindergarten.

The first time I became
aware of seeing her on television, she was the Skippy Peanut Butter lady. But
even in those innocuous 30-second commercials something about her resonated
with something in me. She seemed genuine, in a way that Madge the manicurist
and Josephine the plumber did not. It wasn’t a crush – more of a recognition
that this lady was probably a really nice person.

That’s why I didn’t do a
“Top TV Moments” piece here as I have for other actors I’ve admired. Sure, I
could have talked about her appearances on Disney’s Zorro series and several guest spots as Italian exchange student
Gina Minelli on Make Room for Daddy.
She also reunited with Frankie Avalon on Love,
American Style, played a young widow on The
Love Boat and a ventriloquist on Fantasy
Island.

But none of these roles
were as memorable as when she was just being herself.

Thanks to the Disney
Channel’s “Vault Disney” rebroadcasts of The
Mickey Mouse Club I was able to watch, more than 30 years later, the series
that launched her to ‘America’s sweetheart’ status. At the age of 15, Annette
received 6,000 fan letters a month, more than any other Mouseketeer. Along with
Lucy and Milton Berle, she was one of the first pop culture icons created by
television.

I admired all the
Mouseketeers the more I watched them, and I understood why Annette became so
popular. Cheryl Holdridge and Nancy Abbate were as pretty, Darlene Gillespie
was a better singer and Sharon Baird was a better dancer. But Annette had a
quality that drew your attention.

Perhaps the best word for
it is authenticity. There’s a famous quote about how the key to show business
success is sincerity…”and once you can fake that you’ve got it made.” In the
pre-internet, pre-TMZ world, it could take years for a public persona to
evaporate, sometimes leaving a less-flattering picture of the real person
behind.

This was never a concern
with Annette Funicello. She didn’t try or claim to be more than what she was. Rather
than bemoan the baggage that came with being an ex-child star, she expressed only
gratitude for the opportunity, and spoke of Walt Disney with reverence for the
rest of her life.

She also didn’t consider
her association with a wholesome, mainstream brand to be a burden. Instead, she
accepted a responsibility that came with that fame, most famously by
acquiescing to Mr. Disney’s request that she wear a one-piece bathing suit in
her beach movies with Frankie Avalon.

Here’s the quote from 1987:
"Mr. Disney said to me one day, Annette, I have a favor to ask of you. I
know all the girls are wearing bikinis, but you have an image to uphold. I
would appreciate it if you would wear a one-piece suit.”

She went on to say that she
never regretted that decision.

Everything about this seems
utterly foreign to our present culture – not just the modesty but the
motivation behind it. Contrast that perspective with later generations of teen
stars, who couldn’t run away fast enough from their Disney Channel fame to
prove…something, I guess.

Maybe they were right. In today's
entertainment industry it’s more important to be provocative than humble. Awards and record
sales are the only measures for success. Kindness doesn't count for much.

Viewed objectively, Annette
Funicello’s professional achievements are modest. But she never lost the
heartfelt affection of the audience that grew up with her, and she never let
them down. Read some of the comments on her YouTube videos. They’re incredibly
touching. It would be hard to imagine someone leaving a similar sentiment 30
years from now on a Miley Cyrus video.

I wasn’t a part of that
audience but somewhere along the way I began to share their devotion. She
personifies the era before celebrity became a pulpit of entitlement. I never knew who Annette voted for in any election. I wish I could say that about more TV stars now.

There was an integrity in
how she lived her life. And there was grace in how she accepted a medical
diagnosis that no one deserves, much less someone who brought so much joy to
others. Yes, I still miss her, but I know she’s feeling much better where she
is now.

If you’d like to find out
more about the Annette Funicello Research Fund for Neurological Diseases, you can do so here.